At a stage when they face some major changes, we have personalised programmes to accompany pupils on their path to becoming mature young people who can confidently and successfully venture out into the world with integrity, authenticity and excellent training.
We foster interdisciplinarity and learning through experience. Furthermore, they will develop the skills, abilities and capabilities needed to lay sound foundations that will prepare them for moving up to Higher Secondary.
At this stage, we continue the international formation project and our commitment to the Cambridge International Education Programme.
Our students also have access to an extensive Career Guidance Programme to accompany them on the search for their vocation, their Life Project.
OUR EDUCATIONAL OFFER
As we do at the Primary stage, we offer the national curriculum enriched by the Cambridge curriculum. Subjects are taught in English (60%), Spanish (30%) and Catalan (10%). Our pupils are offered French as an optional subject.
We have a faculty of outstanding quality engaged in ongoing training that is dedicated and willing to bring out the best in each pupil, not only in terms of academic performance but also in terms of human and spiritual development. We are extremely proud of our highly qualified professionals, doctors and university professors with international experience.
OUTSTANDING PUPILS
An outstanding pupil is one that fully develops their potential in the complete complexity of their expressions and commitments. People with critical spirit, a growth mentality, sound virtues, a responsible attitude and focused on helping others and improving society.
This is what we seek to awaken and achieve in each one of our pupils: responsible people with critical judgement, adaptable to any change and committed to society. People with integral formation.
Experiential and interdisciplinary learning: active methods
We develop intelligent and experiential learning adapted to the real world in our pupils, encouraging autonomy, responsibility and inclusion through:
- The development of interdisciplinary projects
- Problem-based learning (PBL)
- Cooperative work as group organisation
Study techniques
We provide pupils with the resources they need to study effectively. For that, they work on the following from the 1st Year of Lower Secondary:
- The planning and organisation of study.
- Concentration and the factors that encourage this.
- Comprehension of the content being studied.
- The tools and techniques used to process or take the learning on-board.
Scientific and mathematical learning
Scientific and mathematical skills form an important part of our curriculum, which is why we encourage the development of curiosity in discovering, learning and understanding through projects, laboratory experiences, participation in Science Fairs and external competitions.
Art, culture and music
We include cultural and artistic content through interdisciplinary projects that allow pupils to express themselves and enhance their creativity.
We seek people capable of influencing our society and our culture, people with a capacity to lead. For this reason, exploring the common ground between history, culture and tradition is essential. To understand the future, we need to know who we are now.
At this stage, our pupils take cultural trips to different European cities.
Public speaking and debate
- Debate and public speaking provide our pupils with greater confidence, critical thought, leadership skills and a clear basis for defending their ideas and convictions.
- Our students work on and develop public speaking techniques in English (as a priority), Spanish and Catalan.
- Participation in national and international competitions: Lego League, Writting Contest, UPC Engineering Contest.
ACCOMPANIED PUPILS
We accompany each pupil via a personalised tutorial action plan to guide them and help them develop their own personal project.
Each pupil deserves constant attention, individualised support and suitable monitoring while always respecting their freedom and personal learning pace.
The tutor takes responsibility for helping and guiding the pupil in partnership with the families, engaging in constant and sincere dialogue characterised by a close communicative relationship between parents, teacher and pupil.
One mission, one goal, one objective and one commitment.
This is our way of accompanying our pupils!
Career guidance
We help to awaken a vocation in our pupils via a programme that invites them to become aware of their own gifts, the opportunities and needs in their environment, and give them the tools to plan their future.
From the start of Lower Secondary, we offer pupils subjects that enable them to discover the various academic disciplines in order to later – in the 3rd year of Lower Secondary – continue with a more specific programme to find the personal development preferences of each pupil.
Education for love
During this very important period in our pupils’ lives, we accompany them on the discovery of true value and meaning in their body, affection and sexuality. We use a method taken from the “Let’s Learn to Love” programme backed by Francisco de Vitoria University.
Cross-curricular formation
To support the family formation programme, we offer pupils the opportunity to study specific workshops taught by professionals in the prevention of addictions (screens, alcohol and drugs), in affective-sexual education, etc.
Christian life and Spiritual accompaniment
We live the following of Christ with joy, passionately seeking the Truth and goodness, and accompanying them in Christian life. Besides our religion classes and other pastoral activities, we have a chaplain and consecrated staff for this stage.
In the 4th Year of Lower Secondary, we prepare those pupils with a desire to do so to receive the sacrament of Confirmation.
Sports Program
ur Sport programme facilitate the learning, improvement and specialisation of one or more sports. Students also have the opportunity to participate in races and sports competitions organised by public and private entities.
Thanks to our extensive facilities the school offers the following sports disciplines as part of its sports curriculum:
- Football
- Basketball
- Volley-Ball
- Paddle
- Ping-Pong
- Badminton
- Parcour
- Cycling outings
- Running
- Baseball
The school also offers extracurricular sports activities. For more information see our Extracurricular Activities.
GLOBAL PUPILS
International formation
Pupils at Highlands School Barcelona feel at ease using the English language at school, are surrounded by native and multilingual teachers with teaching experience at schools around the world and study up to 60% of their subjects in English.
- Global English*
- Biology & Geology*
- Physics & Chemistry
- History & Geography
- Design & Technology
- Programming & Robotics
- Physical Education
- Music
- SpeakArt
A fourth language – French – is offered as an option from the 1st Year of Lower Secondary.
Furthermore, our pupils will have many enrichment opportunities throughout this stage both at and away from school to broaden their horizons and knowledge about the world and languages.
- Trips abroad for cultural and curricular enrichment: France, Lisbon, Italy and the United Kingdom.
- Visiting lecturers
- Debating competitions
We also offer our students international experiences in prestigious schools in the United States, Ireland and Switzerland.
The Cambridge International Lower & Upper Secondary programme (*)
This prepares our pupils under the international education standards moderated by Cambridge University, thereby enriching our own national curriculum. From the 1st Year of Lower Secondary, our pupils take globally standardised exams – Progression Tests – to reveal and assess their level. In the 2nd Year of Lower Secondary, they take an external exam – Lower Secondary Checkpoint – that assesses their knowledge and competencies in the subject. Between the 3rd and 4th Years of Lower Secondary, our pupils study the IGCSEs of Biology and English as a Second Language. IGCSE qualifications enjoy significant international recognition and allow pupils to experience a British method in terms of their content, goals and methodology.
Practical lab work
We believe there are different ways of discovering the truth. The Cambridge Science programme is based on scientific methods and enables creativity, thought and autonomy to be encouraged in pupils when studying the sciences. It also offers a highly practical academic proposal that enables pupils to enrich the knowledge taken from the national curriculum.
Preparation for English and French level accreditation exams
We help our pupils become well-rounded individuals but also help them through external exams to obtain official qualifications. We engage in personalised monitoring so that each pupil can earn the right qualifications for their level of competency from B1 to C2.
DIGITAL PUPILS
Tecnology
We are a benchmark school and we therefore incorporate technology into the academic training of our pupils. We do this gradually, progressively and in a manner adapted to the specific circumstances because we understand that technology offers the necessary enhancements to their intellectual relationship with the world and because it helps our pupils develop critical and creative thought, communicate fluently and expressively, tackle life with maturity and participate responsibly in society.
The investment in technology and digital competency by the faculty at Highlands School Barcelona allows us to guarantee “Blended Learning” through a combination of classroom-based formation with “online” learning whenever the circumstances require.
COMMITTED PUPILS
Formative Discipline
Through formative discipline, our educators work to help children discover the values that lead to rules in everyday life so they can act through self-conviction and not the mere imposition of those rules by others. This allows students to gain an understanding of the meaning and importance of respect and of following the rules for building good harmony at school.
Social Participation Programme: Highlands in action
We want our pupils to benefit from the experience of discovering that there is greater joy to be found in giving than in receiving. We want to foster a desire in our pupils to work for the good of others and the transformation of society.
In partnership with various supporting institutions in several fields, we have designed a Social Participation Programme that is maintained throughout all age groups at this stage of education. By getting involved in various activities with those institutions, our pupils discover the needs of others and learn how to respond in a committed and effective way to those needs while developing a stronger sense of charity and empathy towards the people around them.
- The defence of life. They help vulnerable pregnant women keep going.
- Altius Foundation. “You’re not alone project”. Donation of food to vulnerable people. https://www.fundacionaltius.org/barcelona/
- Homes for persons with disabilities: Letters and online meetings.
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